"The shuttlecraft will not arrive until after sundown. It would be optimistic to assume they will not attack until then, so we must plan our defense.
"We will assume all three groups will attack simultaneously, though possibly the group of Ants to the west will delay their attack, hoping the other two groups will cause us to shift our positions. If there are weapons used in this attack, they will probably be with that group.
"There are several points in our favor in the upcoming battle. First, the Enemy is apparently still unaware of our Defense Net, which is currently pinpointing their positions and movements. Second, as we killed the spider with hand weapons only, they are not aware of our hot-beams or their effect."
"It is doubtful the stun beams described by Kor are effective beyond fifty meters. If nothing else, it would be next to impossible to use them accurately at a greater range. The range of our hand blasters and particularly the turret gun greatly exceed that.
"Unfortunately, the turret gun can only fire in one direction at a time."
"Our strategy will be to deal with the Enemy at maximum distance. The turret gun will concentrate its fire on the group of Ants to the west, as that is the most potentially dangerous. The rest of us must deal with the groups to the North and Southeast."
"Zur!" I interrupted. "Is it not true that the swivel guns on the skimmers have a greater range than our hand blasters?"
"That is correct, Commander."
"Then if we array the skimmers..."
"Commander!" Mahz's voice came to me.
"Rahm here."
"Instruments indicate digging. There is a tunnel in progress to the Southwest."
CHAPTER TWELVE
"Request, Commander."
"Yes, Zur?" I beamed back.
"If opportunity presents itself, I would like your permission to dispose of Kor's body personally."
"What method would you propose?"
"I would use my hand blaster to obliterate her body."
"Explain."
"She was an exceptional Warrior. She deserves a better end than serving as Ant food."
"Permission granted...providing opportunity presents itself. We do not want to prematurely display the power of our weapons."
"Of course, Commander."
Trust Zur to think of details like that under the most adverse situations. Then again, Kor's body was on his side of the fortification. He and Krah would have little to do but stare at it as we waited for the attack.
Our position was tenuous at best. The tunneling from the Southwest had stopped about thirty meters out. The other three groups of Insects had not moved, though another pack of Leapers had joined the group to the Southeast.
We had opened the top of the base disc of the fortification, giving us a circular trench from which to operate. Our force was split into three two-Tzen teams: Zur and Krahn covering the group to the Southeast, Hif and Zome covering the north, and Ihr and I covering the all-Ant group to the west. Mahz at turret gun was assigned to watch for the tunnel opening when it appeared, and cover anything that emerged with his superior firepower.
I scanned the terrain to the west of our position, but could see nothing, even using far-focus. A thick stand of trees fifty meters distant obscured my view. If it were not for our Defense Network, I would be unaware of the Enemy lurking there.
I wondered what the Insects were waiting for. It was almost sunset. Perhaps they were planning a night attack. I discarded the idea. That would be too much to hope for. Besides, the Leapers were not that effective as night fighters.
"Commander." It was Mahz's voice.
"Rahm here," I beamed back.
"More Ants arriving to the west. They're moving slowly, apparently dragging something."
"Identify."
"Unknown, Commander. Large and bulky, possibly mechanical."
I didn't like the implications of that. I shot a glance at the cages of warm-bloods, still stacked in place beside the fortification. They alone seemed unmoved by the situation.
"Shuttlecraft status report?" I beamed.
"Still has not departed... Attack Alert, groups from North and Southeast closing."
"Attack Alert!" I relayed, but it was unnecessary.
The sounds of the hot-beams were deadly soft as the other two teams opened fire on the advancing Enemy. The sound was soon lost in the shriek of dying Leapers.
"Zur," I beamed, "the hot-beams are effective against the Ants?"
"Most satisfactory, Commander," came the reply.
"West group is closing, Commander," Mahz beamed. "Moving slowly."
"Confirmed," I replied.
"Enemy incoming," I said to Ihr softly.
"Ready, Commander." Ihr's voice was tight.
I reminded myself she was a Technician and as such unused to combat.
"West status report?" I beamed to Mahz.
"I can't see anything," Ihr complained, glaring through the gathering twilight shadows.
I ignored her.
"Still closing, Commander," came Mahz's report.
"They're out there," I informed Ihr.
"Then let's see them."
Before I realized what she was doing, she rose and fired blindly to the West. Her hot-beam immediately touched off a small brushfire. In its light, I could see a small group of Ants gathered behind a large piece of machinery.
"Ihr..." I began, but too late.
A ray lanced out from the Ant's machine, cutting her in half at the torso. So much for the self-styled Warrior-Technician. The beam shot out again, opening a gash in the fortification dome behind me.
"Cold-beam!" I broadcast to the other teams, kicking Ihr's body to one side.
"Shall I try for it, Commander?" came Mahz's hail.
"No! Continue watching for the tunnel."
I did not want to disclose the turret gun's presence until absolutely necessary, particularly not with cold-beams around.
I moved along the trench to my left, then cautiously raised my head for a look.
"It seems to be a large, bulky mechanism," I beamed to the force at the fortification. "Any indication of similar devices in the area?"
"Nothing on the Network," reported Mahz.
"No visual contact to the Southeast," Zur beamed.
"Nothing to the North," came Hif's voice.
The Ants were close now. I raised my hand-blaster, aimed carefully, and fired. I was rewarded by seeing the machine collapse and smoke as the attending Ants abandoned it. Then the advancing Ants were on me.
I burned two to my right, then spun and got another as it tumbled into the trench behind me. I backpedaled, burning another, not realizing until later that it had some mechanism attached to its underside, presumably a stun ray.
Such weapons might be effective to ambush patrols, but not in open combat against a Tzen of the Warrior caste. I was constantly moving, presenting an ever-shifting target to the Enemy. Twice I abandoned the trench, clearing a space in the swarm with my blaster before rolling back to relative safety.
My wedge-sword was out now, and I used it freely on living and dead foes alike as the trench became more congested with bodies. I crawled sometimes over, sometimes under the smoldering corpses of Ants in my frantic evade-and-attack pattern.
Suddenly, the flow ebbed. I realized it was dark; the scene was lit by scattered fires touched off by our hot-beams. A beam hissed out from above me, scoring heavily in the ranks of the Ants. It was Mahz, giving me cover fire from the turret gun.